Workout of the Day

Jan 03

Develop vs Demonstrate

Your training efforts in the gym could be broadly categorized as either an effort in development or an effort in demonstration. Put another way, you’re either practicing, or you’re performing. Without a doubt, these two may look very similar on the outside, and the venn diagram of these two categories has considerable overlap, but the intention behind the effort sets them apart. Efforts continually aimed at demonstrating will put the “score” -- a time, a weight, even something less quantifiable but equally praise-able -- as the top priority. On the other hand, efforts aimed at development will take the long-term view. Performance is still the ultimate goal, but with the recognition that to perform at your best, sometimes you must train in a way that does not look the same as your in-the-spotlight performance. The NFL player, for example, does not approach practice the same way he approaches the championship game. His practice aims at the championship game, but with the intention of scaffolding the individual skills and capacities that will lead to his best performance come gametime.

The difference is a subtle one, but an awareness to your intention will give you the best tools for ultimate success and, importantly, longevity. How are you training?